High Stakes: Seminole Gaming And Sovereignty Analysis

In her work, High Stakes: Seminole Gaming and Sovereignty, Jessica Cattelino writes on her studies and observations with the Seminole Indian tribe in south Florida. Within her ethnographic research, she analyzes how the Seminole Indians have reconstructed and materialized their sovereignty through tribal gaming. Since the start of American history, all Native Indian tribes have fought for their land, culture and self-worth. When the United States began to be recognized as its own nation, citizens took control over the native tribes already living there. All tribes across the country have experienced discrimination and persecution throughout their history from the U.S. government because they were not acknowledged as “true Americans.” As a result,
In the perspective of the United States government, however, tribal sovereignty means that Native Indians exist as dependent nations within the borders of the country- they are no longer fully sovereign and independent. Because of this long-standing idea and the continuation of discrimination, the Seminole tribe of Florida has fought to gain autonomy through casinos, education and museums. Cattelino argues, however, that sovereignty has become materialized and tribal gaming has, in-fact, illuminated the idea of sovereign interdependence. She mentions that gaming has caused relations of interdependence because “tribal nations now rely on an ‘outside’ consumer base for casino revenues and because gaming has brought them into new political and legal relations with non-Indians at various governance levels” (Cattelino, 2008: 164). The Seminole tribe not only relies on the government, but also on the population as a whole. Without tourists and regular customers, many of their casinos and other productions would not succeed in the way they do. The treaties and laws that the United States government has put into place throughout history are meant to protect indigenous tribes from poverty and further discrimination. Unlike other casinos, which are funded and run by larger corporations, Seminole casinos are funded by the government and essentially run by the Seminole tribe. Although the
He compares tribal communities to the human body, mentioning that “...it resembles the way the human body is made up of a stomach, immune system, ...or other independently acting biological subsystems” (Peroff, 2001: 149). Just as a human body changes with the changing environment surrounding it, tribal systems are also influenced by outside sources. Building and running tribal casinos and museums are dependent on complex relations with federal, state and local governments (Peroff, 2001: 149). In relation to Cattelino’s arguments, Peroff demonstrates ways in which tribal sovereignty is “emergent” and “dependent” rather than just an entity that is present at all times. Here, the concept of sovereign interdependence is highlighted in regards to tribal gaming. The Seminole tribe utilizes casinos to express their cultural values and sovereignty while also depending on the power of the government and people to continue their traditions. Overall, through her fieldwork on the Seminole tribal gaming in Florida, Cattelino conceptualizes the idea of sovereign interdependence. Many indigenous groups across the United States have fought, and are continuing to fight, for full autonomy over their society, but in order to gain such sovereignty, they rely on the environment around them to